


Mother Love

by MEGArdevoir



Category: Guilty Gear
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-20
Updated: 2015-03-20
Packaged: 2018-03-18 19:12:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3580737
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MEGArdevoir/pseuds/MEGArdevoir
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sol arrives at Illyria Castle after Ky's summons. This is not a job he anticipated. Post-XX and pre-Overture with some slight possible liberties with events. Born of my need for pseudo-paternal times between Sol and Dizzy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mother Love

“I apologize if I misled you. It was not my intention, truly. We needed someone trustworthy.”

“I must have finally hit you upside the head one too many times, ‘cause I don’t have any idea how you could have gotten _that_ impression of me.” Sol’s comment earned him a sigh and a headshake from Ky. Even after all this time, the kid still was taken aback by Sol’s ability to complain about everything, compliments included.

Everything about this situation rubbed Sol the wrong way. Ky was being uncharacteristically secretive about the whole matter and the further they went into Ilyria Castle the fewer servants and guards there were—suspicious considering Ky was the high-and-mighty king. His instincts told him it had to do with Dizzy, but Ky would not be keeping his composure if she were in danger. Always impatient, Sol asked for the fourth time:

“So, _what_ do you need me for? I’m a bounty hunter, not an exterminator so if you’ve got a rat problem down here you’ll need to call someone else.”

Ky sighed and came to a stop in a large corridor. “Alright, here will do. I know I have tested your patience more today than usual, but please give me just a bit more. I assure you I will explain everything momentarily. Wait here and I will return.”

Sol groaned but Ky left before he could spew any of his complaints. Nothing tested the tiny bit of patience he possessed more than not understanding something. Try as he might, he could not think of anything that would explain getting dragged down into the empty portions of the castle while Ky dodged all questions tossed his way. The only answer he had gotten was that there was a job but one without a bounty.

His thoughts were interrupted when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. A figure had darted behind a pillar. Suspicious but ever too lazy to be cautious, Sol walked over and snatched the culprit’s wrist as they attempted to flee.

“The Hell? A kid?” Sol had caught a kid—not like Ky, an actual one: blonde, preteen, and with a strange patch over an eye. The boy squirmed and flailed with his free hand. “Calm down, punk. What do you think you’re doing here? How’d you get in here? Out with it.”

“Lemme go!” The boy swung a blind punch at Sol’s chest and, to his surprise, a jolt of red electricity shot over them. Sol’s eyes grew wide as things fell into place.

This familiar unease.

The secrecy.

“ _KYYY!_ Get your _ASS_ back in here!”

The king came running and let out a pained “Oh, no” upon seeing the situation.

“Is this what I think it is?” He held the boy out at Ky; the kid still squirmed and shouted to be let down. Ky did not look Sol in the eyes and looked as though he was considering how to proceed. “Did they put that crown on your head too tight? Do you know how stupid and dangerous--”

“It’s not as though he was the only one responsible, Sol.”

That quiet voice. Sol blinked and looked over his shoulder and there, entering the corridor, was Dizzy. Sol noticed that she had grown; both her posture and voice were as gentle as always, but were more confident and composed.

“Mom!”

Well, that sealed that. Sol finally released the boy, who hid behind Dizzy and clung to her tail.

Sol opened his mouth at Dizzy only to immediately close it. He furrowed his brow and sighed. “You damn kids are a pain in the ass. You know that?” He wanted to shout more—point out the stupidity of the king of almost half the world popping out a kid with the daughter of Justice—but Dizzy’s intervention made each complaint lose its steam.

“You can’t be too surprised, Sol.” Ky sounded more comfortable now that the truth was out and Sol’s reaction was behind them. “This is a fairly common occurrence between a husband and wife in love.”

Biting back a retort took all the willpower Sol could muster. Love was all well and good, but he doubted that would soothe the concerns of the populace or shield him from his political opponents taking advantage. He was well aware the Conclave was privy to Ky’s relationship with Dizzy and used that to force him to take the crown; having a half-Gear kid involved only compounded the potential problems.

“Meh. Get your head out of the clouds for once. No matter what’s between you…” He paused and gave Dizzy a short look before returning to Ky. “You’re _not_ married. You need to stop talking like this whole thing is gonna work—”

“Wait,” Dizzy chimed. “Did Ky not explain why you’re here?”

“I had planned on explaining everything after getting Sin from his room, but he…decided to not listen to me. Again. I had hoped to be able to ask for the favors in a careful way so that Sol would not react poorly.”

Both Dizzy and Sol shot Ky similar looks of disbelief. Had Ky really thought this could have gone in a way that hadn’t involved shouting? Sol gritted his teeth and groaned. “Just spill it. Or ‘them’, I should say, seeing as I heard ‘favors’. Plural.”

What levity was in the room abruptly disappeared, with Ky, Dizzy, and the kid—‘Sin’, apparently?—all becoming gloomy. Sol’s face softened and he raised an eyebrow, waiting as patiently as he could muster.

“We would like you to take Sin.”

Sol frowned at Dizzy. “I’m a bounty hunter, not a baby sitter.”

“The number of people in the world we would trust him with are few in number. And you are fully aware that among them you’re the only one who can provide Sin the guidance he needs.” Ky added. Sol looked to him for a moment before looking away and closing his eyes. Getting it from both sides with these two was too much. The fact was that, Dizzy herself aside, Sol was the only Gear available.

“The two of you are going to give me an aneurysm. Put me out of this agony and spit out what the other ‘favor’ is. Don’t tell me there’s more brats running around.”

Smiles returned to Dizzy and Ky’s faces. They looked each other in the eyes, nodded, and Dizzy stepped forward to grab one of Sol’s hands in both of her own.

“We want you to be a witness.”

“…Huh?”

 

* * *

 

That aneurysm was still threatening to burst. What had gotten into those kids’ heads? Dizzy had always been too nice for her own good but had always been bright—brighter than him. Maybe Ky had been a bad influence with all of that righteous nonsense and having his head in the clouds. Maybe leaving her to choose her own path had been a mistake.

Sure, the relationship had been harmless enough when Ky was only a war hero and glorified boy scout, and there had been no way to fix it once he was crowned king, but things should have stopped there. Or at least slowed down. Now there was a kid—grandson of the genocidal Gear that had almost exterminated humanity—and things were not stopping; they wanted a wedding. It wouldn’t change anything: Sin could not be kept around and Dizzy would still have to be hidden away. A fancy ceremony and new titles would not soothe the wounds of the Crusades. But the fact they were trying to play at being a normal family was too naïve and careless for Sol’s taste. They were setting themselves up to make a mistake—a big one—sooner or later.

Sol sighed and decided to find something in the makeshift kitchen; the room was another example of them playing house, having been converted from a storage room.

As wrapped in his thoughts as he was, Sol did not notice the room was already occupied before entering. Dizzy was at the counter surrounded by bowls, cups, and containers of various food stuffs. Although her back was to him, Sol could tell by the way her wings sagged and her tail drooped that she was not well—crying, probably. It would be no surprise. His own shoulders drooped a bit and he looked away. Sol hoped to leave but—

“Don’t go.” Her voice was clear, but the slight sound of exhaustion was enough to confirm Sol’s suspicion.

He did as he was told. He frantically looked around the room, hoping for Ky or Sin or one of the few trusted guards to come wandering in so that he could bolt.  This situation hit him with a panic that Justice, I-No, or any of his other enemies could have only hoped to produce.

“I want to thank you again.” Dizzy looked over her shoulder at him with a smile on her face. She did not seem concerned at all that Sol caught her crying—considering her situation, Sol was likely the first person she did not have to keep the impervious and strong act up for.

“Uh. Once is enough, kid. I heard you the first time.” That was the closest he could muster to a ‘you’re welcome’. He had finally succumbed to their requests to both take the boy with him and attend their ‘wedding’ after the sappy pleading had threatened to drive him crazy.

“He’s a good boy. I think you will like him.” Silence—Sol did not know how to respond, so Dizzy continued. “He takes after his father.”

And there we go. Sol snorted. “Great. Because having one punk Kiske brat on my ass wasn’t enough.”

Dizzy laughed. The sound calmed Sol’s screaming nerves. “I said he was _good._ I never said he wouldn’t be a handful. They both are. I am still not quite sure if that is a ‘Kiske’ thing or a ‘human’ thing, though.”

A pause.

“What’s keeping you here? Yeah, Ky, but—shouldn’t _you_ be with the kid, not some bounty hunter?”

Dizzy was quiet and Sol thought he may have made things worse until she answered. “I need to be here. It’s…Creating a world where humans and Gears can live together is something I must do. With Ky. It’s the only hope I have—the hope for a world where we can live as a family.”

Sol said nothing; he listened with a furrowed brow.

“I cannot give up on that hope. But Sin deserves freedom from those responsibilities—he should be free. That is why he cannot be here and I cannot go with him.”

If this had been Ky talking, Sol would have told him to stop being delusional and toss out whatever ‘hope’ was stringing them along and run off to freedom. But he could not bring himself to do that to her—to Dizzy. With her voice and demeanor and quiet strength—

_This world is garbage. You can fix something that’s broken, but not something that’s rotten. But is that right? Aria?_

“But I’m scared, Sol. So scared. I’m terrified. Terrified of losing my son and my family. No matter what I try, I’m scared. What can I do while I’m like this?”

Sol opened his mouth for a moment, then closed it. This reminded him too much of things he had hoped to forget. His mind told him to tell Dizzy to forget it and leave—that it was pointless. But…

“That’s alright. It’s alright to be afraid. It’s alright to be scared. All that matters is that you never give up.”

She looked up at Sol with a look of surprise. No doubt she did not expect him to say anything, much less anything optimistic. Then, she laughed. Embarrassed, Sol growled but that did nothing to stop her.

A bit more laughter, then Dizzy let out a curse under her breath. Curious, Sol joined her at the counter. Sugar, flour, butter, measuring cups, a pan—it was obvious now what she was doing.

“I…I can’t believe I did this.”

“What?” Sol raised an eyebrow.

“The first rule of cooking—I have read it in about every book on it I’ve found: make sure you have all your ingredients before you begin. I have no eggs. First the oven acts up and now…” Her voice sounded as though it was to crack; on top of everything else today, this was at risk of being the straw that broke the Gear’s back.

Sol reached over the counter to grab the cookbook and gave it a look. “This what you’re using?” Dizzy nodded. He chucked it over his shoulder and earned a baffled, angry look. “Garbage.” He pointed to her and then at the doorway. “Out.”

 

* * *

 

What was he doing here? In a tiny chapel in the depths of a castle while two went through the motions of a wedding? Someone—something—like him should not be anywhere near here. But he did as asked: he sat in silence as one of Ky’s trusted knights—totally unequipped and with no authority to be a priest—went on. Sin sat beside him and the kid was quiet for the first time since Sol met him.

Ky had managed to get Dizzy a wedding dress; a waste, considering it would be worn once and only seen by the groom, their kid, a few nobody knights, and Sol. But the sight gave him pause.

_How the Hell did she turn out like you?_

After the vows, the family was left alone—save for Sol, still there and feeling as awkward as ever. He would have left, but Dizzy shook her head when got up to go, so he had groaned and sat back down.

“Cake!” The shout came from the other side of the room from—Sin? Sol looked to his side and wondered how the kid disappeared without him noticing.

“Sol, how did you…We didn’t have the ingredients.” Dizzy was happy, but looked at the round, brown cake.

He waved a hand dismissively. “Kid, you’re bright, but if you only believe what you read and don’t think for yourself you’re not gonna get anywhere. Think outside the box.” It had been simple enough; he substituted the missing ingredient. It took no more than a basic understanding of chemistry.

“Although.” Ky chimed. He scrutinized the cake and rubbed his chin. “Quite plain for a wedding cake. Don’t you think? Sol?” It was brown and round—certainly not ‘wedding’ material.

“Ungrateful punk. If you want it—look, no matter how you make it look it’s gonna taste the same. Who gives a shit?” He glared at Ky, but only got a laugh for a response, to which he gave a growl.

“Well, I think it’s just fine. Don’t you think so, Sin?” Dizzy smiled at the boy, who was already shoveling the dessert into his mouth. She looked the brightest Sol had seen her.

“Are we gonna have cake when we’re traveling?” The boy asked him.

“No. Don’t like sweets.”

“Aww, c’mon, old man.”

Sol shot the boy a glare, then another at his parents—only to get stifled laughter in return. At that moment he regretted everything he had done that day and kicked himself for once again being too nice for his own good. Then, he pointed at Sin.

“You’re _not_  calling me that.”


End file.
